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Kithuka, Lamb, Grimes lead Tech into NCAA indoor meet

Texas Tech wants to make a lot of noise at the NCAA indoor track and field championships, even without a lot of representation.

Tech has only four individuals and one relay in the two-day national meet today hosted by Arkansas, but there’s a chance the Red Raiders could come away with a national champion and more than one all-American.

Kennedy Kithuka ranks No. 1 in the 3,000-meter run and No. 4 in the 5,000-meter run, giving him a reasonable shot to add to his collection of national titles. Kithuka won nine individual NAIA national championships at Wayland Baptist, then transferred to Tech for his senior year and won the NCAA cross-country title in the fall.

Senior Bryce Lamb is ranked No. 3 in the men’s triple jump, having gone more than 53 feet, and senior Katie Grimes is ranked No. 6 in the women’s 60-meter hurdles with a school record time of 8.16 seconds. Lamb placed fifth, fourth and third in the long jump the last three years at the NCAA indoor.

Kole Weldon is No. 16 in the men’s shot put. The sophomore from Jacksboro broke the school record twice this year.

The Lady Raiders are shooting to achieve all-America status in the 1,600-meter relay for the second year in a row. The group of Amoy Blake, Cierra White, Christen Rivers and Candace Jackson ran a school-record time of 3 minutes, 33.72 seconds last weekend at Notre Dame, which ranks them 10th in the nation.

All the Tech athletes except the women’s relay team will compete today.